A Shortage of
Skilled People and Nowhere to Learn

A major chain
of electronics schools closed recently

The Electronics Technicians Association (ETA International) reports that
there is a critical shortage of electronics technicians. They are engaged
in a campaign to interest people in careers in electronics. However,
although many universities have programs in electrical engineering, there
are fewer options for those who are interested in electronics service and
repair. Some community colleges still have excellent electronics
technology programs, but others have curtailed or eliminated such
programs. Private vocational schools are an excellent choice to train and
enter the workforce quickly. However, many such schools have phased out
their electronics courses or closed altogether. Students interested in
electronics technology have dwindling choices.

No matter where you
are, you can learn electronics technology at RSD Academy.

Resources for
Instructors

RSD Academy has textbooks, video lectures, supplemental
videos and other resources. Use RSD Academy to supplement your curriculum
or as your complete curriculum.1

Students

RSD Academy has the structured online courses you need for your
education. These include reading assignments from our textbooks, video
lectures, supplemental videos, and other resources. We also have a
testing system where you can evaluate your progress and document your
education. Our plans include working with companies and corporations to
provide opportunities for mentored hands-on learning.

Is a brick and
mortar school with live instructors your best option? RSD Academy is still
here for you. We offer supporting resources and another point of view. RSD
Academy is a great way to supplement your learning experience.

Tuition and
Financial Aid

RSD Academy is
financed by sponsorships and free will donations. As such, we have no
tuition or financial aid. RSD Academy is able to provide free education
and free resources to educators because of our generous sponsors and patrons at Patreon.
If you benefit from RSD Academy—whether through free education, free
resources or because we are preparing more skilled people as potential
employees—please consider sponsoring RSD Academy or pledging a
donation. Go to
patreon.com/rsdacademy for
more information. Thank you.

About the Founder

Our founder, Bob DuHamel, earned an associate degree in electronics technology
from San Diego Mesa College. For ten years he worked as an engineering technician
for several companies. When the PC became ubiquitous, he transitioned to that
field, where he developed custom programs and maintaining computer networks
for small businesses. In 1998 he began his teaching career at a small technical
school preparing students to take CompTIA's A+ exam and the
ETA International CNST exam. At that school, he led the team that
developed the original CNCT exam for ETA International. In 2003, while
working at a nationally accredited vocational school, he was assigned the
task of developing an academic course in electronics
technology, information technology and fiber optic technology. The
unique nature of this highly compressed course required that he build
the entire curriculum, including writing a series of textbooks. This program
inspired the courses at RSD Academy.

Licensing and Certification

After
completing the courses at RSD Academy, you
will be well-positioned to attempt exams for several certifications and
licenses. Most jobs for which our courses prepare you do not require a license. One exception is that a General
Radiotelephone
Operator License (GROL) is required to work on radio transmitting
equipment in
the United States. Some businesses require certification as a matter of
policy. Regardless of business policy, certification shows that you are
willing to prepare for and demonstrate your knowledge
through the certification process. The business you want to work for
will know that you meet a certain level of competency and are prepared
to do the job or be further trained to meet their needs. This will give
you an edge in the hiring process.

The Electronics Technicians Association (ETA International) is authorized to deliver the GROL exam and
offers multiple levels of certification in electronics technology,
information technology and fiber optic technology. To learn more about becoming
a certified electronics technician, visit their site linked below.

See our
friends at ETA International and learn
how to become a certified electronics technician.2

By using any resources at RSD Academy, you agree to the following terms:

Privacy Policy

RSD Academy is based in the United States of America and is therefore not
subject to the European Union cookie laws. However, for your information,
here is how RSD Academy uses cookies, session variables and other persistent
storage:

When you register as a student at RSD Academy, we request minimal personal
information. We do not share this information with anyone unless you
specifically request that we do so. We may store short-term or long-term
persistent data (session variables and cookies) related to your use of the
website. This data may be stored on our server or in your browser. This
information is used to authenticate you when you log in or load secure
pages after logging in. It also allows you to track your progress. We do
not share this data with anyone. RSD Academy uses Google Adsense to
display advertisements. We do not share your personal information with
Google. However, Google uses cookies to track users at RSD Academy and
other websites. Here is
Google's privacy policy and how to opt out of their personalized
advertising.

Use of Materials

Materials at RSD Academy
are copyrighted. We are in the process of developing a legal license for
our materials. In the meantime, here is what you may and may not do with
resources at RSD Academy.

Charge a fee to your
students equal to your cost for printing out textbooks.

You May Not

Redistribute our
materials in any way not expressed above.

Charge a fee for
printing and distributing our textbooks that exceeds your cost for
printing.

You Must

If you use our materials in your classroom, you must inform your
students that the materials are from RSD Academy.

If you embed our videos on your website you must credit RSD Academy.

All donations to RSD Academy are voluntary. However, if you use our materials in your classroom
or distribute our textbooks to your students, you must inform your
students that RSD Academy is supported by donations and inform them
that they can make voluntary donations at
patreon.com/rsdacademy.

You Should

Be mindful of the value of what you are getting for free. Please consider going to
patreon.com/rsdacademy and donating an appropriate amount
according to your means. Thank you.

1

RSD Academy is still under construction. However, we
have textbooks and other materials ready for DC Electronics, AC
Electronics, Solid State Devices, Analog Circuits and Digital
Circuits. Our curriculum on Communications Circuits is finishing
development.

2

RSD Academy and ETA International have the common goal of promoting
careers in electronics technology, information technology and fiber optic
technology, but are not affiliated.